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Kevin Lowe and Craig MacTavish aren’t the only people in Edmonton defenceman Darnell Nurse had face-to-face meetings with this season — he traded punches with Edmonton Oil King forward Curtis Lazar at the Top Prospects game in January.

Getting in a fight in what amounts to an all-star game wasn’t on his agenda, but when a scrap comes knocking, he’s always quick to answer.

“I didn’t go in there looking for it, I didn’t think anyone was really going to fight,” said the Sault Ste. Marie captain, projected to go anywhere from fifth to eighth on Sunday. “When Curtis asked me to go I said ‘We can do this if you want, nothing wrong with that.”

While some players are reluctant to make physical statements on the ice, Nurse loves it. In a game where big men are either St. Bernards or German Shepherds, he’s the latter.

“It’s something you’ve got, or you don’t have,” he said. “I have it. I always liked hitting people more than getting hit. It’s better to give than receive, right. That’s just always been the way I’ve been.

“It’s just something that comes in my game. During the season you’re being someone who’s hard to play against and you get challenged. There’s always the right time to step up.”

Ironically, Nurse wound up being a hockey ruffian because his father, former Hamilton Ti-Cat Richard Nurse, and mother Cathy, who played basketball at McMaster, thought football was too dangerous.

“I wasn’t allowed (to play it),” said Nurse, whose uncle by marriage is long-time NFL quarterback Donovan McNabb. “I tried. But my parents wanted to keep me safe, crazy as it sounds, playing hockey. I guess in hockey you control a little more who gets hit when you’re on defence.”

In hockey, he will also be a role model for other minority kids who might not normally gravitate toward the ice. That isn’t a responsibility he takes lightly. But after watching one of the most classy and professional players in the game from afar, he knows what’s expected of him.

“Growing up, I got to watch Jarome Iginla,” he said. “He was one of the main reasons I loved hockey and became one of my favourite players to watch.

“It’s probably not the first thought I have — I play hockey because I love playing hockey — but being an inspiration for somebody some day is something that drives me, too.”

Dan Marr, executive director of NHL Central Scouting, says whoever winds up with the 6-foot-4 defender will be getting a good one.

“I’ve always compared him to Shea Weber,” said Marr. “He’s got a mix where he’s good at the physical game, good at the skill game. He’s got a good shot from the point. He’s a good package.”

But, despite his athletic lineage, none of this comes naturally.

“I wish it was that easy,” he said. “For me, athleticism wouldn’t get me too far if I didn’t work the way that I did.

“Everybody is athletic, everyone is in the gym five, six times a week. Having the athletic part as a background is a good help but it would be hard to find somebody who works has hard as I do.”